Legacy
by sasha1600
Summary: Unhappy with Tony’s behaviour, Gibbs drags him back to his basement for a little chat. Warning: spanking of adult. Don’t like? Don’t read!
1. Chapter 1

**Legacy**

**Summary**: Unhappy with Tony's behaviour, Gibbs drags him back to his basement for a little chat. **Warning**: spanking of adult. Don't like? Don't read!

**Disclaimer**: I don't own 'em, I just play with 'em.

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A/N: This story is part of my series that began with The Lesson, and refers in passing to events in my other stories, but should make sense on its own. This one looks in a bit more depth at the 'father figure' aspect of the Gibbs/Tony relationship. It takes place sometime in season 2; no specific episode tags for the main events in this story, which are the product of my imagination, but there are a couple of references to things that happened in season 1.

For draggon-flye, who was a very patient and helpful sounding board as I worked this one out and who suggested some of the best lines.

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**Warning: contains the non-sexual spanking of an adult and references by an adult to having been spanked as a child (but no 'on-screen' spanking of minors). If you have a problem with that, click on that 'back' button now. You've been warned.**

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'C'mon, Boss. Please? We have time...'

Tony hadn't looked this excited since the Navy had given them a Gulf Stream jet for their impromptu visit to Gitmo. Kate thought to herself that he bore a remarkable resemblance to Tigger, practically bouncing up and down with enthusiasm.

'For the last time, no.'

'Why not?'

'Because it is not a toy.'

'I _know_ it's not a toy. That's why it's so great! C'mon. Just for a minute...'

'NO! Now, c'mon. We've got work to do.'

Tony followed his boss into the base headquarters. McGee, who had been left to carry the field kit as usual, finally caught up to them. Noticing Tony sulking, and not noticing Kate's warning glare, he unadvisedly asked him what was wrong.

'Gibbs won't let me drive the tank.'

'It's not a _tank_, DiNozzo. It's a Light Armoured Veh...'

'Oh, c'mon, Gibbs. It's a _tank_. It's kind'v a baby tank, but it's a tank!'

Gibbs fixed Tony with a glare and stalked off. The younger man finally shut up.

Shifting his grip on the heavy cases, McGee met Kate's eyes. 'It's gonna be an unbearable day, isn't it?'

'Two dead Marines, a training accident that might not have been an accident, no witnesses who are willing to talk to us, and Tony trying to convince Gibbs to let him drive a tank. What do you think, McGee?'

McGee could only sigh as he trudged after his boss.


	2. Chapter 2

'Alright, listen up. Kate, McGee, I want you at the crash site. Make sure there's nothing wrong with the helicopter that could've contributed to the accident.'

'You mean other than the RPG taking out the main rotor?'

'Yeah, Kate. We don't assume...'

'Double-check. I know.'

'Ok, then. Get going. Tony, you're with me. I want you where I can keep an eye on you.'

'Gibbs!'

'C'mon. We're gonna go find out why we shot down that bird.'

X X X

'Hey, Gibbs! Have you seen these things?'

'Stop playing with the evidence, Tony, and finish taking those photos.'

'Done, Boss. And don't we have to test all this stuff, make sure it's working properly?'

'DiNozzo, how do you expect to tell if it's working properly, when you don't even know how to work it in the first place?'

'C'mon, Boss. How hard can it be? You look through this thing here, and...OW!'

Gibbs pointed him towards one of the witnesses and told him to go take his statement.

Ten minutes later, Gibbs looked up from his own interview and stormed across the few yards that separated him from his senior field agent.

'So, you see, I was standing about here, and Corporal Johnston was taking the targeting readings and relaying them to me, and I just aimed where he told me to. And then the Staff Sergeant told me to fire, and I did.'

'And you were holding this thing like this?'

'Yes, Sir. That's pretty much...'

'What the HELL do you think you're doing, DiNozzo?'

'Uh, Boss, the Corporal here was just showing me...'

'Put down the grenade launcher before you blow up half the base.'

'I'm not...'

'NOW, DiNozzo!'

'Jeez, Boss. You're always telling me that you learn by doing...'

The head-slap wasn't unexpected, but the force behind it was astonishing. Tony yelped.

'Touch anything else, and I'll hand-cuff you. Now take statements. Without the sideshow.'

'Yes, Boss.'

X X X

'Agent Gibbs?'

'Yeah, Gunny?'

'Uh, I don't know quite how to say this... The agent that you sent to get the comm logs for this morning...?'

'Yeah?'

'Well, there was an LAV parked near the admin building...'

'Oh, for the love of... How much damage did he do?'

'Well, he ran over a couple of shrubs before he figured out how to stop, but it could've been worse.'

'Thanks, Gunny. I'll deal with it.'

X X X

'Alright, then. The targeting laser was defective. It wasn't murder. We're done here. Kate, you and McGee take the truck back and make sure Abby gets all the evidence, but tell her she doesn't have to stay and process it tonight. Dotting the i's can wait.'

'Sure thing, Boss.'

'Ok. I'll see you Monday.'

Gibbs headed towards the sedan, leaving the rest of the team standing near the truck.

'DiNozzo!'

'Yeah, Boss?' Tony shouted after him.

'With me!'

Kate and McGee gave him sympathetic looks.

'D'ya think he'll leave without me if he gets to the car first?'

'I wouldn't bet on it, Tony.'

'NOW, DiNozzo!'

With a wistful glance at the safety of the truck, Tony jogged after his boss.

X X X

'What the HELL has gotten into you, DiNozzo? You were acting like a goddamn toddler out there today.'

'Boss, I...'

'Joyriding in an LAV? Have you completely lost your mind?'

'It wasn't exactly _joyriding_, Boss. The kid who was washing it told me I could take it for a spin around the parking lot.'

'Did you somehow miss me telling you to leave the damn thing alone? About a dozen times?!'

'No, but...'

'And you sure as hell know better than to fool around with live weapons.'

'I wasn't trying...'

'So what _were_ you trying to prove out there?'

'I wanted to know how that stuff worked.'

'Tony, it's not an overgrown toy store where you get to play with the displays!'

'That's not what I meant, Boss! It's just that you know about all this stuff from the Corps, and I thought that if... oh, never mind.'

Gibbs glanced over at his agent. Tony was slumped in his seat, arms crossed over his chest, staring resolutely out the window. Making a sudden decision, he turned the car away from the Navy Yard and headed to his own house, ignoring the look of surprised curiosity from the younger man.


	3. Chapter 3

Gibbs was already sanding his boat when Tony came down the basement stairs carrying two mugs. He had changed into the old t-shirt Gibbs had tossed at him, and had put the coffee on in the kitchen as he'd been told to do. Gibbs put down the sanding block and beckoned Tony over to the work bench. Handing over one of the mugs, Tony stepped closer, a little confused. He'd expected to sit on the bottom step and watch Gibbs while he worked on the boat, lectured him and calmed himself down enough to spank him without killing him.

'I've got a little project for you.'

'Uh, Boss? I don't know...'

'If you're that curious about how things work, you can start with something that's not likely to get you killed while you figure it out. And working on this will give you some time to think, and to develop some patience.'

'Ok...,' Tony said hesitantly, warily eyeing the various tools hanging from the peg-board. 'So what do you want me to do?'

Gibbs pointed at a flat piece of wood that was already wedged into a vice, and handed him a small hand-held saw.

'Get that cut out, then I'll show you how to round the edges.'

Tony stepped closer to the work bench, and peered at the outline already pencilled onto the wood.

'I'm making a cutting board?'

Gibbs smirked around a mouthful of coffee.

'I thought you were in a fraternity, DiNozzo.'

'Yeah, what's that got... oh... no... nonononono... I am _not_ making a goddamn _paddle_!'

'Tony...'

'No way, Gibbs.'

Tony put the saw down on the work bench and turned towards his boss.

'If you want to punish me, then let's get it over with. I'm not standing here all night making a freakin' paddle so you can spank me with it.'

'Oh, it probably won't take all night. Just a couple of hours.'

'No! It won't! 'Cuz I'm not doing it!'

Setting his coffee down on the work bench, Gibbs draped an arm around the younger man's shoulders and turned him back towards the unshaped wood.

'Tony, I'm gonna tell you exactly what my father told me when he had me make a paddle for him. Either you can do it. Or I can spank you for defying me, and _then_ you can do it with a sore backside. It's your choice.'

Tony turned his head towards him, his eyes wide. Gibbs watched the warring emotions play across Tony's face: unwillingness to co-operate; dawning horror as he calculated the likelihood that his boss would follow through on the threat; fascination at the thought of a much younger Gibbs being punished this way.

'You're not serious...'

Gibbs tightened his hand on Tony's shoulder. His voice deathly quiet, he asked, 'Do I look like I'm kidding to you, son?'

After a moment's hesitation, Tony reached for the saw.


	4. Chapter 4

Tony quickly discovered that cutting hardwood by hand is tiring. The muscles in his arms and shoulders were aching. He was sweating, and he was itchy from the sawdust that had adhered to his damp skin when he'd tried to wipe away the rivulets that down his face and neck. He had been relieved when Gibbs had dragged him upstairs for dinner, but his unvoiced hope that he wouldn't be made to continue had, of course, been dashed all too soon. Now he was back at the work bench, hacking away at the hated instrument of his impending doom.

The worst part of this exercise, he decided, was how much time he had to think about what was coming next. Gibbs hadn't actually told him that he was going to be testing out the new paddle that evening, but he was pretty sure that he was going to be going home with a sore butt. And he really didn't want to think about how much it was going to hurt being spanked with this thing.

Tony was still annoyed about the way Gibbs had chosen to punish him. As he'd once told Kate, he didn't really have a problem with the fact that his boss spanked him when he screwed up. Most of the time, it was better than the alternatives. And, if he was really being honest with himself, he liked knowing that Gibbs cared enough to hold him accountable for his actions. No one had ever done that for him before. His father's punishments had been pretty arbitrary; if he managed to annoy the man enough, he'd find himself on the wrong end of his belt, but he never knew what behaviour would be enough to draw his wrath so he tended to do what he wanted and hope for the best. And then he'd been rejected entirely when he was far too young not to need a parent's guidance. Gibbs's consistent discipline grounded him more than he liked to admit. But Gibbs had never made him wait so long for his spanking, and having time to think about it wasn't an addition to the routine that he wanted to encourage. And he resented having to make the paddle that was going to be used on him.

It didn't help Tony's mood any that this was the first time he thought he didn't really deserve the spanking that Gibbs was going to give him. He'd been trying so hard to earn the ex-Marine's respect by learning as much as he could about every aspect of working for the Navy, proving that he really was planning on sticking with this job even though his usual two years were up. But he always felt insecure and out of place when he had to deal with things that were specifically military, where he couldn't draw on the skills he had learned at his various jobs in civilian law enforcement. Maybe he'd overcompensated and stepped a bit over the line, but it didn't seem fair to him that he was going to be punished for being too enthusiastic.

Ok, so maybe driving the tank was going a bit too far. But it had been exciting. Even ploughing up the shrubbery when he realised he had no idea how to stop the thing had been fun, in a way. Having that much power, driving something that won the battle with solid wood, was pretty cool. He knew he'd get head-slapped if Gibbs found out – and, let's face it, Gibbs _would_ find out. But he hadn't really expected to get spanked for it. Despite his gruff no-nonsense exterior, Gibbs actually had a pretty high tolerance for behaviour that could be chalked up to 'boys will be boys'.

And it was just unfair that Kate had got to learn how to rappel because of Gibbs's theory that 'you learn by doing,' but he was going to be paddled for trying to figure out how a grenade launcher worked. Especially since the case turned on whether it was working properly, and whether it was being used correctly. How the hell was he supposed to know that, if he wasn't entirely sure which was the business end of the damned thing? He probably shouldn't have been such a smartass about it when Gibbs took it off him, but it still rankled.

So, as far as Tony was concerned, he was being punished for having a normal American male's interest in an over-grown muscle car, and for doing his job. Not to mention that he had hoped that his boss would be pleased by his open display of interest in all things Marine. By the time he'd finished cutting around the outline Gibbs had traced for him, he'd worked himself into a serious funk.

The last piece of discarded wood clattered to the floor. Tony looked up, and found Gibbs watching him.

'Now what?' Even to his own ears, his voice was sullen and petulant.

'Now you tell me what's wrong.'

'Gee, Boss. I'm spending a Friday night in your basement, making a goddamn paddle so you can spank me with it. What could possibly be wrong?'

Gibbs stepped closer to him, deliberately invading his personal space.

'Do you have a problem with how I discipline you, DiNozzo?'

The loud silence stretched through several seconds before Tony answered.

'Not usually, Boss.'

'But you do this time. Why?'

'Forget it. Can we just get this over with?'

Tony started to unfasten the clamps that were holding the rough paddle in place on the work bench. Gibbs closed his hand over Tony's, securing the clamps back in place, then turned the younger man bodily around to face him.

Tony's pent-up frustration burst forth in a stream of invectives that soon gave way to a fraught recounting of his dismay about being punished for trying too hard to make Gibbs proud of him. Finally, his anger spent, he turned his back on his boss and slammed his hand down hard against the unfinished paddle before slumping against the work bench.

Gibbs gave him a moment, then gently turned him around again. Tony sagged in defeat, then slid down to sit on the floor, hugging his knees, with his back against the work bench. Gibbs hesitated, then sat down beside him.

'Tony, you don't have to turn yourself into some half-assed Marine wanna-be to impress me. You're a damn good ag...'

'But...'

'No, no buts. And you should know by now that I'm proud of you, son.'

'So, is there any chance you're not gonna...'

'Nope.'

Tony sighed loudly and stretched out his legs, clearly getting ready to stand up. Gibbs put his hand lightly on his knee, keeping him in place.

'I'm not spanking you because you wanted to learn something, Tony.'

'Then why...'

'I'm spanking you because you decided that the best way to learn about an unfamiliar weapon that may or may not have been malfunctioning was to pick it up and start playing with it. I'm spanking you for putting yourself and everyone around you in danger.'

'But how else...'

'I was going to _teach_ you how to use it properly, Tony. Safely. With appropriate supervision. Like I _taught _Kate how to rappel, when that was what she needed learn. I wanted to finish the interviews first, so the Marines could get back to doing what they needed to do. But as you said, we needed to check for problems with the equipment so I was going to show you what you needed to look for. I was even going to let you fire the damn thing.'

Tony looked up at his boss, a mixture of shock and disappointment clearly visible on his face.

'You were?'

'Yeah.'

'And you didn't, because I had been messing around with it, when I wasn't supposed to?'

'No. I thought you'd be back from getting the comm logs by the time I finished the last interview. I wasn't expecting you to go for a joyride in that damn LAV and then spend half an hour getting chewed out by Colonel Franklin over it. I needed to finish up while there was still enough daylight to see what I was doing, so I couldn't wait for you.'

'Oh.'

'And, of course, I'm spanking you for disobeying me about the LAV.'

'But..'

'No buts, Tony. You didn't know what you were doing, you could have done a hell of a lot more damage than what you did to those bushes, and you could have damaged the vehicle itself. We didn't have the kind of time it would take for you to learn how to drive it safely, especially since it would be purely an indulgence when it wasn't something you needed to learn today. And more importantly, when I give you an order, I expect you to obey me. You know that.'

'Sorry, Boss.' Tony felt deflated, no longer angry and resentful about being punished and starting to feel really crappy about how he'd behaved. 'I guess I really screwed up on the whole impressing you thing, huh?'

'Well, I'd have been more impressed if you'd done what I told you to.' Gibbs paused, then asked, 'You up to finishing this tonight, or do you want to continue tomorrow?'

Tony looked up, surprised.

'It's not an endurance test, Tony. You _are_ going to finish the paddle. And I am going to spank you with it. But if you need to call it a day...'

'No. I'm fine. And I'd rather get it over with.'

Tony started to push himself up from the floor but suddenly yelped and sat back down, staring at his hand.

'What's the matter?'

'Damn thing bit me.'

Gibbs took a closer look, and saw the splinter that Tony had got from his assault on the unfinished wood but had been too distraught to notice until now. Standing up, he grabbed an old Swiss Army knife from one of the screw-top jars suspended above the work surface and, taking Tony's hand in his own, used the tiny tweezers to pluck the fragment of wood from the younger man's palm.

'Thanks, Boss.'

Gibbs held out his hand to help him up.

'Come on. I'll show you how to finish the edges so you don't get any of those on your butt.'

Tony sputtered, turning towards the offending object with renewed hatred.


	5. Chapter 5

Gibbs finished demonstrating how to round the edges of the paddle and handed the tool to Tony. Tony looked at it sceptically, and tentatively attacked the wood, softening one of the right angles into a gentle curve. Gibbs watched for a moment, then stepped behind the younger man and reached around him, guiding his hands with his own. Tony stiffened momentarily, then relaxed into the almost-embrace, letting his boss encourage him to lean into the wood with stronger, more confident strokes.

'That's good work, Tony.'

They worked in silence for a few minutes. Gibbs eventually stepped back and let Tony continue on his own.

'Uh, Gibbs?'

'Yeah?'

'Why am I doing this? I mean, I can see your point about me disobeying you, and the safety thing... but why have me make a paddle? It's not like you've ever had any problem finding things to spank me with before.'

'Because it's how my father dealt with me when I did the same thing.'

'You played with a grenade launcher when you were a kid?!'

'No. But I did something stupid and dangerous because I was trying to impress my father.'

'What did you... wait... I just told you that I was trying... you knew?' Tony stopped working and turned towards him.

'Yeah, I knew.'

Tony turned back toward the paddle, using his concentration on the work to disguise the emotional turmoil he felt at the revelation. He was a bit embarrassed that his desire for his boss's approval was so obvious. But at the same time he was strangely pleased that Gibbs was equating their relationship to his relationship with his father. He had a sudden mental image of that scene in the West Wing where the President gives the family heirloom carving knife to his aide, and he ruefully wished that Gibbs's 'you're like a son to me' message didn't have to be quite so painful.

A few minutes later, Tony swallowed the lump in his throat and asked 'So, what did you do?'

'What?'

'When you had to make the paddle. What had you done?'

'I'd broken into my father's workshop and used his tools without supervision, after he'd specifically told me they were off-limits.'

Tony broke out laughing.

'You got punished for playing with his tools by having to use them to make a paddle for him to spank you with?'

'Yeah. It didn't seem very amusing at the time, though.'

'What did you want the tools for?'

'I wanted to know how locks work. So I got some tools from the workshop, then proceeded to take the knobs off of every door in the house and took them apart to see how they worked.'

'And you thought that would impress your father?'

'Well, I figured I'd put them all back together before he got home, and then I could impress him with the knowledge I'd acquired.'

'Only you couldn't figure out how to put them back?'

'And put an eight-inch gouge in the front door trying to shoehorn the lock back into place after I'd reassembled it wrong. And cut myself in the process, and ended up needing stitches.'

'Ouch.'

'Wasn't nearly as bad as how I felt after my father'd gotten through with me.'

Tony stopped smiling and looked down with trepidation at the now nearly finished paddle. Gibbs handed him some sandpaper.

'With the grain.'

Tony started sanding the wood to a smooth finish.

'You got spanked for hurting yourself?'

'No, I got spanked for doing something dangerous and for doing something I'd been forbidden to do.'

'Oh.'

Gibbs chuckled. 'Yeah, I thought you'd be able to relate to that. Only I had to make the damn paddle with a sore hand and a sore ass.'

Tony's eyes grew wide, remembering the threat his boss had made earlier in the evening.

'You mean...?'

'Yeah, I was one stubborn kid.'

Grabbing his own abandoned sandpaper from the work bench, Gibbs turned back to his boat, leaving Tony to work in stunned silence.


	6. Chapter 6

Gibbs ran his thumb over the smooth wood, checking for splinters.

'That's nice work, Tony.'

The younger man smiled at the rare praise from his boss, wishing that it came in a different context.

'It's a little lopsided.'

Gibbs looked critically at the slightly asymmetrical paddle.

'Ah, that just gives it character. You'll do better next time.'

'_Next_ time?' Tony nearly choked, causing Gibbs to chuckle softly.

'The next time you make _something_, Tony. I don't think we'll need more than one paddle.'

'You know, you don't have to find this so damn funny, Boss.'

Gibbs grinned again.

'So, you ready to test this thing?'

'I don't suppose we could skip that part, huh?'

'C'mon. It's almost over.' Gibbs was more sombre now, his voice quiet and, to Tony's ears, oddly encouraging for someone about to spank him.

Sighing deeply, Tony leaned forward and braced himself against the work bench. He felt Gibbs rest his hand lightly on the small of his back. He took a deep breath, steeling himself against what he knew was coming.

A moment later he heard a _whoosh_ followed by the crack of the wood against his ass. He grunted, breathing through the pain. It wasn't as sharp as the sting of leather, or that awful switch Gibbs had once used, but he knew the bruising would be deeper and he'd really feel it when he sat down for the next few days.

Another hard _whack_, and another burst of pain. Another low grunt, another slow breath. Repeat. Again. And again. Gibbs was giving him time to recover between strokes, and Tony was grateful for the unexpected kindness. Each stroke of the paddle was hard and hurt – a lot – but letting the worst of each wave of pain fade before adding another meant that Tony was able to endure the spanking with more dignity than he usually managed. His breathing was uneven, there were tears in his eyes, and his knuckles were white from the death-grip he had on the work bench. But he wasn't howling in pain like he usually did when Gibbs whipped him.

The sixth stroke drew a slightly louder gasp and he screwed his eyes shut against the throbbing pain that was no longer fading very much after the paddle's impact. But the agonising smack he expected never happened, and he heard Gibbs putting the paddle down somewhere.

It took him a few seconds to catch his breath enough to speak.

'That's it?'

He was still in position, not daring to believe it was over already and not sure he could find the strength to obey if Gibbs told him to bend over again.

'Unless you don't think it's enough.'

Tony struggled upright, wincing at the movement. Oh, it was enough, alright. He'd be feeling it for days, at least, every time he sat down. He'd just expected it to be worse. He'd never known Gibbs to stop after only half a dozen strokes. And after the emotional roller-coaster the day had been, he'd expected the paddling to reduce him to a sobbing mess.

'No, I'm good.' He hoped his answer would be enough to convince Gibbs.

Despite his answer, Gibbs caught his confused expression.

'The real punishment was having to stand there and think about what you'd done wrong, Tony. The paddling was just to reinforce the lesson. Trust me, if I ever need to use that thing on you again, you're not going to think you got off easy.'

Easy? Who said anything about this being easy? Tony wondered. Out loud he said, 'Oh. I was kinda hoping I could take it out back and burn it.'

Gibbs laughed, clapping him on the back as he steered him towards the stairs.

'No, I think it's going to go live in my desk drawer. It might just come in handy.'

Tony shot his boss an angry look but wisely kept his mouth shut.

'Come on, son. I'll drive you home.'


End file.
